Promotional Products for Military Events

If you are really proud to be an American, one of the best things that you can do is to show how proud you are an American. With American soldiers serving the country all over the world you can show your solidarity with them by either buying promotional products’ or giving then away as gifts. You can show your support for the army, the navy, the marines, the coast guard, the air force and every section of the military by either buying or selling military promotional products during military events. By imprinting a wonderful military giveaway gift, you will truly show that you care for the people in the forces.

There are very many promotional products that can be used during military events because the military is a diverse organization that is made up of people with many different ranks and file and they all can be reached with all types of military promotional products. Military giveaway gifts are cheap military promotional products that are distributed by diverse departments of the military for the purpose of encouraging the confidence and self-esteem of the uniformed men and women.

Most promotional military products will be designed with all the three colors of the flag and will also have the logo and the message of the department that distributes them. During events for recruitment or career days or even the days when the military appreciates the children and spouses of the uniformed people, such items may be distributed among the military people as well as their families. Because such military items are for military people, they are in most cases designed my people who have had a connection with the military or are part of the military.

Because each department of the United States uses different ways to promote their service men, it is not easy exactly pinpoint what promotional products the military uses to enhance its image. Consequently it is not easy to define what the military would allow. Nonetheless the military uses various methods to ensure that they enhance the image of the military. When the military is looking to add recruits to their rank and file, the best way to do so is by having advertisements all over because this truly helps them to reach out to many people who want to join the military.

The best way to look for promotional gifts for military events is to search for them online. This is because placing an order is not easy and especially when dealing with people who are overseas. It is best to place the order online and then have the product sent overseas. There are also different days that are commemorated by the military and these are wonderful times when you can give out the military promotional products. Different types of military products are available and there is a wide variety to choose from. If you want your company to promote with military products, the target market must be people who are either in the military or are closely associated with i

Military Education Programs: How the Right School Can Help You

Most prospective students choose a college based on a handful of deciding factors: location, size, tuition cost, and available programs or activities. But when you’re in the military, your educational plans change drastically. You have to decide whether you want to pursue your education while you serve or after active duty, and you also have to consider where you’ll study and whether you want to opt for traditional or online schooling.

To make your education much easier, consider enrolling in a military-friendly college. These schools have rigorous military education programs that are designed to offer you the flexibility and support you need. Learn more about the benefits of military education programs by checking out what they can do for you.

Who can get help?

Military education programs and services are so helpful because they assist a variety of military personnel. Whether you’re on active duty, a veteran, or even a military spouse, you can qualify for special services from certain colleges.

What do Military Education Programs help you with?

As a military student, you have access to all of the resources and support services that non-military students do-only military education programs surpass normal schools because they understand your specific needs as a member of the military. If you choose the right school, you can get help with every step of the application process from an experienced representative.

Military education services are also dedicated to helping you figure out your financial aid options. Although military aid benefits are a huge asset, learning how they work is nothing short of challenging, especially when you have to choose from the military’s Tuition Assistance program and the multiple types of GI Bills. By working closely with a military liaison or financial aid representative at a military-friendly school, you can get help understanding and applying your military benefits to your education. Some schools even offer additional aid for military students through scholarships or the Yellow Ribbon program.

How do they help?

Military-friendly schools help you tackle all of the challenges you face as a military student. Most significantly, they offer flexible scheduling in their programs, either through campuses that are conveniently located near military bases or through online learning options. Some schools offer online classes that military students can take while they’re on base or stationed across the world.

When do they help?

Military education programs make sure they have the proper staffing and department structure needed to be available to their students. Many employ specialized military liaisons, representatives, or entire Military Education or Military Financial Aid departments to serve their students. Military students can often seek help at any time, either by contacting military liaisons by phone, in person, or online.

If you’re ready to find a school that can help you pursue academic success, start researching military education programs. Military students who choose a school that fits can pursue a rewarding educational experience by getting the support they need.

Potomac College offers career-oriented programs at the Associate, Bachelor and certificate levels. Potom

November Is Military Family Appreciation Month

Passionately Patriotic – One of the reasons I embraced the military lifestyle as a young and newly married Navy wife was because of the patriotic response I witnessed in other seasoned military wives. I had never seen such patriotism until I stood pier side that first time surrounded by thousands of other military families for the exuberant homecoming of the war ship my husband, Ray, served on.

Military families care deeply about their nation. Deep down they know they are part of something honorable, even though they wear no uniform. When they marry Uncle Sam becomes their demanding father-in-law, who expects them to also “serve” but behind the scenes in faithful support. When a service member retires or leaves military service, there’s an indelible mark of patriotism and Americanism that lives on. They become the beacon of light to those that follow them.

Spouses of Military Members – The military spouse who becomes the ‘home-keeper’ has an important role to fill. The spouse’s support is vital to the overall success of his or her service member’s job. If the home is not stable or unified, this has the potential to affect not only the service member’s performance, but also his or her command readiness level. An unstable, un-unified military home can compromise the command’s mission. For this reason, military families need our country’s prayers and support. How can our country remain a military superpower if our military homes are unstable and the service member’s focus is severely divided.

Military spouses also know there will be occasions in which they will have to give up a good job or forfeit that much needed promotion or raise in order to go where the military sends their husband. I chose to look at these types of negative aspects of the military lifestyle much like the old fashion film strips of the past called, ‘negatives’. It’s the negative aspects of life that develop us into resilient military spouses. Those negative circumstances, combined with patience and faith, become the threads, when woven together, make up the resilient fabric of a military wife.

Military Families are Natural Volunteers – Oftentimes you will find military families volunteering in their commands, communities, schools, and for worthy causes. They are used to the idea of sacrificial service as they live it out every day, so for many military families volunteering is just part of their lifestyle.

Military Families are Committed – Even though they don’t wear a uniform, they too, serve this country. They forfeit holidays, birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and major milestones without their beloved service member. Even when times get downright hard, they endure, knowing this time of extreme difficulty will pass. Deep within their soul, there is a strong conviction that their sacrifice matters and contributes, however small, to lasting freedom and the upholding of the core values of this nation. The military family’s commitment and faithful support becomes part of the mosaic of the faithful support of all those that came before them.

Extended Family Members – Military families who are blessed with family living near by, their support is priceless. Often, grandparents become vital in the lives of military children. Grandparents are often called on to open up their homes to care for grandkids if both parents are deployed or a military spouse works a non-traditional shift or attends college. In our case, we were never stationed near family, however, we were blessed with two civilian families that had prior military service, and I’m convinced God put them into our lives because He knew we needed them.

It doesn’t take much for a military family to feel appreciated. More often then not, what they really want to know is that they’re not forgotten. A handwritten ‘thank you’ card, a heartfelt hug, or a simple gesture such as adopting a military family over for Thanksgiving dinner is the perfect way to celebrate the month known for giving thanks. What better way to say thanks than sharing a Thanksgiving meal together.

Lisa Nixon Phillips, a retired military wife, as well as a military mom, writes and speaks for the

Critical Thinkers and Creative Leaders in The Professional Military Education System

Introduction

The U.S military is led by several of the most educated professionals in the world. It is also not uncommon for a retiring commissioned officer to have spent lots of time in a classroom learning. Every commissioned officer and a number of career noncommissioned officers have a college degree, and add an advanced civilian degree. This is boosted by what is known as the “professional military educational system,” of which is comprised of specialized schools operated by the military services. The most significant are staff colleges, whose students have 12-14 service years, and war colleges, of which often come between the 18th to 22nd years of the career of an officer.

Today’s military leaders are constantly compelled to act as “out of the box” thinkers. Such statements give the impression that the only comprehensive solutions are those that have never been conceived. However, what the professional military education system (PMES) as well as the military really endeavor to produce are leaders that have strong critical as well as creative thinking skills. Both indirectly avoid the idea that a box even exists.

Importance of critical thinkers and creative leaders in PME

Today’s organizations function in what the U.S War College describes as a VUCA setting. Volatility, complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity are continuous realities within the 21st century. The military tries to prepare for challenges it could probably face by creating realistic training scenarios as well as routinely adding such activities into its ongoing operations. The objective is not to teach them what to think, but to develop their ability to think creatively and critically about the number of contingencies posed by a dynamic environment-in essence to teach them how to think and not what to think.

The expression “professional military education”(PME) shows the duality of the system. It is intended to both increase the military’s professionalism as well as educate it. These are related as well as overlapping goals, but they are not similar. Professionalism means that the military leaders share both an amount of knowledge directly associated with their mission and ethics. While education implies a widening beyond the limitations of knowledge directly associated with the mission and the advancement of critical and creative thinking.

Good decision making is one of the traits together with good leadership that is significant when it comes to command. Critical and creative thinking also has significant consequences for group dynamic skills as well as quality control. Critical and creative thinking skills are needed in order to produce constant honest quality improvements. However, while several military processes depend on good critical and creative thinking, evidence shows that behaviors as well as skills may be lacking. A constant changing environment also requires a constant change in the approach to education.

Critical and creative thinking for military leaders to succeed

The increasing complication and changing landscape of the human environment necessitates critical and creative thinking skills. These thinking skills have not been taught as part of the traditional education nor are they emphasized within the military. Critical and creative thinking is vital to professional military education in that it provides a strong tool to function within a complex, and changing world.

One of the most significant facts about PME’s is training, and the most significant points concerning training is the importance within the training environment as well as the focus on creative solution. In addition, it is totally critical to focus on the advancement of personal leading and thinking skills. Gaining technical skills, collective training, and knowledge are significant but secondary educational requirements are needed. A military leader is the focal point of failure in military undertakings. Skills, collective training, and Knowledge mean little unless exceptionally trained as well as competent leaders engage units and soldiers correctly and effectively. Furthermore, military leaders make two vital contributions to military success: one, effective decision-making and two, capitalizing on the abilities as well as potential of subordinates. One of the best methods for military leaders to become successful is by using simulation and technology in order to train critical and creative thinking as well as decision-making. However, the technology is there to support the thinking process, but the military generally has not made the necessary steps in using the technology to train individual critical and creative thinking as well as decision making skills.

Every action and every undertaking by humanity was first a thought, every decision, problem, solution, and new invention or creation was initiated by some particular form of thought process. The capability for a purposeful thought is what lifts military leaders, yet sometimes, their strongest attribute is their obvious weakness. Instead of formulating rational solutions based on realities of the environmental, military leaders seem to be essentially prone to reshaping environmental reality to fit pre-predestined answers. The military leadership thinking process is normally anything but rational, and worse yet, they are totally blind-sided concerning mental failings. Faulty actions is driven by faulty thinking. History has proven this. For example, Japans defeat during the Second World War was due to its leadership’s incapability to critically and creatively position herself as the war turned against them. Another example of a poor decision-making process was the Vietnam War whereby highly intelligent people were perpetuated by collective stupidity. Therefore, no amount of good leadership can improve a decision that is faulty from the beginning. Good leaders have to first make good decisions, and yet good decisions require critical and creative thinking and leaders have to understand the limitations and capabilities of their own thought processes.

In industry, 90% of the time is spent on executing business actions, and less than 10% is apportioned to increasing organizational as well as individual abilities through training. On the other hand, the military spends a lot of time training and executing-even in the middle of high risk operations. For example, a unit in Iraq or Afghanistan will not put aside its experiential training program while engaged in combat operations, because its capability to clearly and creatively address future challenges is improved by a persistent commitment to improving soldier’s adaptability and competence through experiential exercises, and actual experiences. However, the real lesson for military leaders is not merely that training is paramount. The real issue is the value of how the military structures its training opportunities.

The Army describes leadership as both completing the mission as well as improving the organization. Permanently improving the organization necessitates the development of human capital. The military believes that people are substantively improved by improving their capability to skillfully address challenges within their environments. Therefore, the military does not find ways to limit thinking by limiting available solutions, unless the suggested action infringes any of the criteria of which are morality, safety, ethnicity or illegal.

So as to have people tussle with what it takes to have action plans where the above-mentioned criteria establish their only limitations, the military structures its experiential training undertakings with broad parameters. Events are made to mirror uncertainty within operating environments (while targeting specific needs of the organization). Military leaders are responsible for setting the conditions in all training activities and resourcing them correctly, as well as reminding participants all through the exercises that there are many potential solutions to each unclear challenge.

There are two significant things to take away from military practice of which engage in routine experimental training. One, crucial feedback. The military practice of having intermediate as well as final after-action reviews (AARs), whereby all participants test the preparation, execution, planning, and follow-up of any vital organizational initiative which promotes a learning culture. Two, coaching is needed so that feedback is translated into behavioral changes. Studies have shown that feedback without coaching hardly results in changes in behavior. Therefore, all military leaders must develop their ability to coach others. Dialog and reflection lie at the center of development. Experiential training creates the drive for both to happen.

Conclusion

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